MUMBAI: Maharashtra’s Revenue Minister, Chandrashekhar Bawankule, announced on Tuesday the free regularization of small land parcels that were purchased in violation of the Fragmentation Act. This initiative is projected to benefit approximately 60 lakh property holders and nearly three crore citizens statewide.
“Entries reflecting transactions violating the Maharashtra Prevention of Fragmentation and Consolidation of Holdings Act will be erased from the 7/12 land title document,” Bawankule stated. He emphasized that the newly implemented eight-point procedure will legitimize thousands of long-standing small-plot transactions in Maharashtra.
In response to Bawankule’s directive, the revenue department indicated that this procedure will apply to land transactions conducted between November 15, 1965, and October 15, 2024. District collectors, settlement commissioners, land record officials, registration authorities, and divisional commissioners received instructions following a government gazette issued on November 3.
The decision encompasses areas under planning authorities, like the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and its counterparts in Pune and Navi Mumbai, including residential and commercial zones, cantonment lands, non-agricultural regions outlined in urban plans, and areas adjacent to village gaothans (original settlements).
Under the new regulations, landowners can now have their names officially recorded on the 7/12 land title document. Cancelled mutation entries will be re-evaluated and approved, allowing for inclusion of the buyer’s name as the occupant. Names currently listed under “other rights” will be transitioned to the primary “occupant” category, with notes about “transactions against the Fragmentation Act” removed.
Unregistered transactions will also receive relief. Citizens who engaged in transactions using only notarized papers or stamp documents will be encouraged by talathis and circle officers to register these deeds. After settling applicable stamp duty and registration fees, their names will be added to the 7/12 document.
The government has clarified that once regularization is completed and the buyer’s name is reflected in the official records, there will be no further restrictions on sale or transfer. This move promises significant relief for middle-class landowners in urban and semi-urban areas, providing full legal validity to their properties.
Previously, citizens had to pay a penalty of 25% of the property’s market value to regularize such transactions, which was later reduced to 5%. Despite this adjustment, reluctance persisted among the populace, prompting the state’s decision to eliminate the fee altogether. This initiative is expected to support nearly 60 lakh families, or three crore individuals.
